Backstory

Once part of their sister species, the Eldar, the ancestors of the Eldar race were the cause of the Fall. Before the Imperium rose to power, the Eldar ruled the galaxy and spread beauty and grace to all the worlds within it. Perfectly set in their power, they turned their energies inward in an attempt to improve themselves to the point of perfection. The Eldar sought to experience emotions and sensations to their fullest extent, disregarding the morality of their actions. Foreseeing a terrible outcome, the Seers of the Eldar warned against these "pleasure cults," warning that no good could come out of them. The Eldars' many excesses caused the Chaos God Slaanesh to be born, and its birthcries tore a hole in the centre of the Eldar Empire, leaving only a few Craftworlds that were on the fringes. The hole through which She Who Thirsts (the Eldar's name for Slaanesh) tore from the Warp still remains; it is known by the Imperium as the Eye of Terror.

The remaining Eldar were forced to decide a way to survive after the fall. The Eldar split into two factions: The Eldar of the Craftworlds fortunate enough to escape the Fall decided to resist Slaanesh, and follow a path of restraint and balance. The few young survivors in the core Eldar worlds refused to surrender their lives of hedonism. The survivors rallied around those ruthless enough to rule their kin. The newly-formed Kabals escaped to within the Webway itself and founded the city of Commorragh, escaping the predations of Slaanesh through the protection of the Webway and the suffering of their victims. To differenciate these Eldar from their more benign kin, they are called the 'Dark Eldar'.

The Dark Eldar have a third resource, Soul Essence, which they can harvest from the fallen bodies of their enemies
and even their own troops. This Soul Essence can be used to cast a variety of powerful global abilities which appear in a new panel on the in-game UI, and give the Dark Eldar an edge in combat. These abilities range from more basic powers like Piercing Vision, which enables any unit to detect cloaked enemies for a time, to Screams of the Damned, which universally lowers morale for all enemies on the battlefield. At the highest tier, one of these abilities, Soulstorm, allows the Dark Eldar to tear open a small Warp Storm upon the battlefield, which can be controlled for a limited time and decimates enemy infantry wherever it goes. These Soul abilities, combined with the hit-and-run nature of the Dark Eldar, makes their play experience unique and very exciting.

Dark Eldar Units

Tortured Slave

"They told me I would build things, and not be beaten all the time!"

These unfortunate souls, mostly humans captured during Dark Eldar raids, are utilized as builders once their masters tire of tormenting them. Sent out into battlefields hobbled and chained, Tortured Slaves plant Warp spire pods to start building construction. This allows the Dark Eldar structures to essentially build themselves, freeing the Tortured Slave to quickly begin other fortifications.

Mandrake Squad

"They cower! We carve..."

Basic, front-line units, the Mandrakes are experts at camouflage and infiltration due to their Warp-tinged shadow skin. This special ability, combined with their innate cruelty and blood lust, makes the Mandrake a terrifying addition to Dark Eldar Forces.

Warrior Squad

"Ah! Where is our quarry? I long for the hunt!"

The Warrior Squads are the primary infantry unit of the Dark Eldar. These forces are trained to move quickly and strike in lighting hit-and-run raids. A Warrior Sybarite, who provides leadership and tactical expertise to their campaigns can reinforce them.

Hellion Squad

"Death from above!"

Often deployed at the head of an advancing Dark Eldar raiding force, the Hellion Squad are mounted on skyboards, able to quickly engage in close quarter combat, making them very effective skirmishers against infantry units.

Scourge Squad

"The earth does not deserve to touch my feet."

This elite unit trains in the use of jump packs, making them highly effective shock troops. Unlike other armies with jump-assault units, the Scourge Squad carries heavy weapons into battle, allowing them to rain destruction down on opposition and flee before the enemy can muster an effective counterattack.

Wych Squad

"It recalls my days in the arena."

Wyches spend their entire lives perfecting the skills of gladiatorial combat. They battle each other, warp beasts, and captured soldiers - and few survive their first fight. Those that do quickly become expert melee combatants, and are hired into service as heavy infantry units that use crippling attacks that slow units and sap morale. In addition, their keen eyes and dark sorceries allow them to detect infiltrated units.

Warp Beast Pack

Spawned from the bloody nightmares of mortals, Warp Beasts are death and pain embodied. Mindless and brutal, the Warp Beasts are "organized" and driven against enemy forces by their Beastmasters. Their brutality knows no loyalty and while viciously effective, a loss of unit morale will cause them to turn on heir handlers with unhindered fury.

Archon

"Death is my meat, terror my wine."

Any commander experienced in fighting the Dark Eldar know to fear the Archon, a vicious melee warrior who leads front-line troops into battle. This unit can use his Animus Vitae ability to drain the energy from his opponents, healing himself in the process. In addition, the Archon can be reinforced by his highly trained retinue of Incubus troops, increasing his abilities.

Haemonculus

"I'm he-ere! Where are my victims?"

Deploying out of the Kabal Fortress, the Haemonculi are the master torturers of the Dark Eldar race. Viewing the mortification of the flesh as the finest of arts, the Haemonculus inflicts high morale damage against the enemy unfortunate enough to fall under his blades. In addition, the Haemonculus's keen eye detects infiltrated units, making him a vital addition to a commander's war effort.

Raider

"We fly!"

Raiders are light anti-gravity skimmers which is used by Dark Eldar to transport their breathen to launch high speed attacks. They are able to move at an astonishing speed, yet lightly armoured and are highly vulnerable.

Raven

"I am Raven, airborne death!"

The Raven is a form of ground attack aircraft armed with two Dark Lances and one Splinter Cannon. They are often used to annihilate the enemy's armour to make it easier for Raiders to move about the battlefield. Once they are done, they will continue to take down infantry until a path has been created for the main attack forces.

Talos

Constructed by the insane Haemonculi, The Talos is a torture device that sweeps across the battlefield on anti-gravitic motors. Possessing an excellent melee attack, the Talos can also harvest Soul Essence from fallen opponents, making this sinister weapon especially feared throughout the universe.

Ravager

"The Ravager, in heavy armor clad!"

The tank buster of the Dark Eldar, the heavily armored Ravager moves more nimbly than similar vehicles controlled by opposing forces. Though it is primarily deployed to clear out Vehicles and Buildings, it can be upgraded with Disintegrators to annihilate infantry.

Dais of Destruction

"My chariot... Forged in the dark city, built for pain and death!"

The ultimate weapon of the Dark Eldar army all but assures victory for a wise commander and bears their leader Asdrubael Vect. The Dais of Destruction projects an energy field around it, shielding all units from incoming ranged weapons, while returning fire with deadly weapons effective against all unit types. Finally, the weapons can be overloaded to unleash the Dark Scythe ability, which causes extreme damage in a swath in front of the Dais.

Buildings

Kabal Fortress

The Kabal Fortress is the first command post established by Dark Eldar raiding forces. The unholy screams of the tormented echo in the endless halls of this grim citadel, and the basic units of the Dark Eldar army deploy from this position. In addition, the covens of the Dark Eldar Archon research new deployment and ability options from inside their dark chambers.

Tower of Loathing

One of the most disheartening sights for an enemy commander is a Tower of Loathing being erected on a captured Strategic Point or Relic. These ugly towers serve as a basic defensive fortification in newly captured territory, protecting it until further reinforcements can be called in. Additionally , it can be upgraded with equipment to allow requisition rates to increase, as well as heavy weapons to mow down oncoming hostile forces.

Thermo Plasma Generator

Slave Chamber

Built in exultation of the Chaos God Slaanesh, the Slave Chamber provides dungeons for the masses of slaves used to provide the lords of the Dark Eldar with labor and entertainment. This harvesting pit of soul essence increases the population cap, the research speed, and the reinforcement speed of Dark Eldar forces, as the souls of the unfortunate trapped within galvanize the shock troops to greater acts of sadism. Finally, the torturers of the slave chamber can sacrifice one of their thralls, sending out a blast of pure agony-driven psychic energy.

Hall of Blood

The Hall of Blood is the primary producer of infantry for the Dark Eldar, where the bloodthirsty foot-soldiers of the pirate force are trained and equipped. Used to produce the Archon leader and Warrior Squads early into the game. Later Wych Squads, Scourge Squads and daemonic Warp Beast Packs can all be requisitioned here as the raid intensifies.

Haemonculus' Laboratory

Before they were enthralled by the Chaos God Slaanesh, the Dark Eldar were part of one of the most cultured and learned civilizations of the universe. That scholarly tradition continues, albeit in a more twisted fashion, in the halls of the Hameonculus' Laboratory. Here, sinister sorceries and the application of pain, misery, and death are brought to the aid of their brethren as research into increasing the combat effectiveness of their forces. Once the Haemonculus' Laboratory is complete, the Dark Eldar commander can access Squad Leader options and special units.

Dark Foundry

The essence of effective Dark Eldar strategy is the manufacture of fast-attack vehicles capable of easily traversing terrain and engaging enemy forces in raids. The Dark Foundry supplies the commander with a vast array of vehicles capable of meeting this task. In addition, the centuries-old engineers conduct research to improve the quality and durability of their weapons.

Wych-Cult Arena

Among a species where cruelty is an art and souls are the stuff of life, the Wych Cult Arenas are among the most significant expressions of their culture. In the death-games of the Arena, the Wych cult train themselves in melee combat, allowing the Wych Squads to be deployed. In addition, the twisted tutors of the Wyches conduct research into using the tormented souls of the fallen as weapons in their raids.

Soul Cage

Since inadvertently creating the Chaos God Slaanesh through their ghastly rituals milennia ago, the Dark Eldar have been in the thrall of their thirst for living souls. The Soul Cage, a hideous edifice echoing with the souls of the damned, is the ultimate monument to their corruption. The appearance of a Soul Cage on a battlefield means that the Dark Eldar's strongest units, the Ravagers and the Dais of Destruction are available to overwhelm their opposition.